


Just this Once

by lha



Series: Gabriel Lorca: Child-whisperer [9]
Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: Babies, Children, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-04-05 15:22:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14047161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lha/pseuds/lha
Summary: Gabriel makes Sylvia's life much easier, just this once.





	Just this Once

“I am so sorry Admiral Lorca!” Tilly cried, retrieving her son from a slightly stunned Gabriel’s arms.

“Gabriel,” he corrected automatically, she only ever slipped when she was on the back foot. 

“I’m so sorry,” she said, her frazzled air rapidly descending towards open tears, “let me just...” she was searching her bag for something but Lewis was crying now and obviously and understandably unhappy. 

“Sylvia,” he said calmly, his own shock wearing off. “Sylvia, it’s ok.” He’d realised as soon as she’d arrived that she was obviously not having a good day which is why he’d invited into his office proper in the first place, taking charge of Lewis and offering her a seat and a cup of coffee.

It had only really been chance that he’d met her at all, despite the fact that she’d come to his offices. Gabriel had had dinner with Hugh and Paul earlier in the week and had been given a bag of Tilly’s children’s belongings that had been left at some stage. He’d left them with his aide on the understanding that Sylvia would swing by and collect them when she had a moment. The fact that he had been passing through the outer office when he had been in discussion with Sharif, had just been chance.

“Sylvia, it’s fine…” he said again, despite the fact that he was supposed to be in a meeting in five minutes and he now had milky baby vomit all over the shoulder of his uniform. 

“He’s much more sicky than the others were but there’s nothing really wrong with him. I had to pick him up from daycare because he had a fever but I’m sure it’s just that he’s starting to teeth,” she said, still trying to search her bag presumably for cloth. 

“Well, let’s be sensible,” Gabriel said, “my jacket’s a lost cause, how about I take him back for now,” he said, taking him, “while you find a cloth to protect your uniform.” He tried not to think about it too much as with a wet gurgle the infant regurgitated another mothful of white liquid.

Tilly was a natural at motherhood and while Gabriel had no idea how she managed to juggle a career and four children under eight, she usually did so with aplomb. With Adrian off world however, that the well oiled family machine seemed to be struggling a little. 

“What’s on your schedule for this afternoon?” he asked, rocking gently back and forth.

“I was supposed to be meeting with Captain Crowl, he’s already not my greatest fan.” she said with a sigh. Crowl was a hard nosed snob at the best of times whom Gabriel had brushed up against more than once. “But it can’t be helped,” she continued more calmly, offering him one of the cloths she’d now found. 

“Maybe not,” Gabriel said, accepting it and wiping Lewis’ face and then mopping up the worst of the damage to his jacket, “why don’t you leave him with me?” 

“I can’t ask you to do that,” she said, “I mean you said you were going to a meeting.”

“Well I am but I’m also in charge of the meeting and Crowl will be more of an ass than usual if you cancel.”

“But…”

“I also have a staff, who I’m sure will be delighted at the opportunity to coo and dote over a small person for a few hours.”

“Are you sure?” 

“Yes,” he replied, “go see your CO. Finish whatever else it is you need to do this afternoon. We’ll be fine this once,” he said, seeing something in her unwind. 

“Thank you so much. I’m off tomorrow and then Adrian’s back so we’ll be fine but, thank you so much Gabriel.”

“Go,” he said firmly, “leave the change bag!” he called after her. 

Gabriel waited until Tilly had left for the second time and looking down at the infant in his arms and wondered what on earth he had gotten himself into. 

“Ensign Sharif?” he called to the outer office, suspecting that his aide would be hovering just outside. The young man appeared almost instantly. 

“Ensign Sharif, this is Lewis. Would you take him while I change my jacket,”he said, throwing a cloth over the ensign’s shoulder. 

“Of course Admiral,” he said, despite looking terrified. Gabriel handed over the baby but by the time that he’d unfastened his jacket Lewis was balling at the top of his lungs. “Uh, everyone’s arrived and they’re in meeting room sigma, and Admiral Terral is here to see you.”

“Why?” he asked, reaching his undershirt which seemed unscathed. 

“I’m not sure,” Sharif replied, trying to jostle and calm his charge unsuccessfully.

“In that you didn’t ask or that he wouldn’t say?” Gabriel asked looking through the cupboard next to the en suite.

“He wouldn’t say.”

“Sharif, where’s my spare uniform?”

“It, uh, may still be in the refresh.” Gabriel closed his eyes and breathed as Lewis let out a particularly loud howl.. 

“Right, give him back here,” he said taking Lewis who stopped crying long enough to blink at him. 

“Send in Admiral Terral, let the others know to start without me and then go find the nearest grade 3 replicator and get me a jacket.”

“Yes Admiral. Sorry Admiral,” he said collecting the soiled clothing Gabriel had abandoned on his desk.

“Hardly your fault Sharif, but quick as you like?”

“Yes, sir.” 

“What’s all this?” he asked Lewis whose hand was now gripping at the fabric of his blue t-shirt, his open mouth leaving wet patches on his shoulder. “Sharif’s alright really,” he said retrieving one of the cloths and managing to slip it under the infant’s head. His crying had quieted down although Gabriel wasn’t entirely sure why, when Terral entered the room. The vulcan raised an eyebrow at him,

“Forgive my uniform standards Admiral,” he said, forestalling the other man’s comment, “but I’m afraid there was something of a biological incident.”

“I wasn’t aware that you had offspring, Admiral Lorca.” 

“Not mine,” he said, swapping the arm he had slung under Lewis, “just helping out a friend, Admiral. Now forgive me but I’m due in a departmental meeting and I wasn’t expecting you, how can I help?”

Predictably Torrel’s question was both relevant to Gabriel’s specialty and in need of a timely response. It was something of a personal frustration to him that he found his fellow Admiral so difficult, he didn’t think it was his Vulcan nature, or at least he found Sarek much easier to rub along with. Still, after that first dig he’d just studiously ignored the child Gabriel was holding. Twenty minutes late, still missing his uniform jacket and quite literally holding the baby, he entered meeting room sigma. 

“Sorry ladies and gentlemen, believe it or not, I am tardy for strictly professional reasons which have very little to do with the fact I am holding a child.” There was general amusement at this but Lewis was fast asleep, drooling happily on the cloth still draped over his shoulder so without further ado, he turned to business. “Where have we gotten up to and what’s next?”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!  
> Drop me a line either way, here or on twitter @LHA_again  
> thanks  
> Lx


End file.
